There are signs that environmental risks, particularly extreme weather and government regulations to reduce pollution, are becoming both more material but also systemic, with the potential to affect large swathes of investment portfolios.

Submit shareholder proposals. Nominate new directors. Attend annual meetings to ask questions of the executives and board members. But do not sell the stock that gives you the right to engage on the issues you care about with the people who can make a difference.

Fiduciary capitalism is well-situated to take on a leadership role for three major reasons: size, technology, and the priorities of major institutional investors. The top 1,000 such fiduciaries worldwide account for $25 trillion, which is more than half the world's equity market value.

How many investors got the timing right on the implosion of mortgage-backed security assets in 2008? Nearly none, and that systemic failure of vision contributed mightily to a global financial collapse.

Our communities have all that is needed, the intellectual and economic capital, the strategic and political savvy to ensure our places at the table and our ability to generate real wealth for our communities.

What drives the investment decisions of investors with a longer time horizon? Our research found these investors generally do not look at differences in interest rates among countries when deciding where to invest.

While Alan Greenspan has been busy denying any blame or foresight into the financial crisis, Paul Volcker has been working to dissociate the speculative risks of hedge funds from banking. But "The Volcker Rule," does not go far enough.